One application of interest is wirelessly configurable LED drivers.
With the rapid adoption of LED technology, there is a growing need for programmable electronic drivers that may be configured on demand to suit end application requirements. This helps luminaire manufacturers manage inventory better, by reducing the number of stock keeping units. As an example, an LED driver may be designed to support a range of current levels and dimming options such as 0-10V, DALI etc.
A luminaire manufacturer can then program the LED driver to a specific current level late in the manufacturing process. Such programmable LED drivers are commercially available and are usually configured using wired communication interfaces like RS-232 or DALI. Wireless solutions like Wifi or Zigbee also exist but are limited due to high cost.
In order to provide the wireless communication function, a dedicated antenna is required for the wireless communication system. For high ingress protection (“IP”) applications, such as IP65 and higher, the antenna has to satisfy the IP rating as well as the LED driver enclosure. This can present difficulties, particularly as it is desirable to place the antenna outside the protective enclosure of the LED driver.
The same issues apply to other applications in which a device is mounted inside an enclosure and includes a wireless receiver (and/or transmitter) circuit, which requires an associated antenna, and the antenna needs to be outside the enclosure.
There is thus a general need for an antenna arrangement for such applications.
It is known to integrate a radio antenna into a cable, for example an earphone cable for use with mobile phones, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 7,417,592. The aim is to find a space for a long UHF and VHF antenna.
EP2629363A1 discloses an antenna integrated harness of electric cables.